One of the thrift stores I frequent has awesome vintage educational games every once in a while that I pick up for my kids for mere cents. Without trying, I've amassed such a nice collection of vintage educational puzzles that thrift store clerks often ask whether I'm a teacher.
Several months ago, I picked up several boxes of the puzzles shown above, all with different themes and puzzle formations, for only 55 cents each (a price sticker on each box says they originally retailed for $1.50).
A clear bonus of these Japanese-made puzzles has been the fun and colorful graphics on them that depict animals, people and common objects. My kids enjy putting these puzzles together because they love the graphics so much, too.
Today, I picked up three educational board games, the highest at a cost of three dollars. When I took some of the board pieces out of one box, I was a little surprised that they were so colorful since they had been in rather plain boxes sealed with tape.
I was having such a good time just enjoying the graphics when it occurred to me for the first time that some of these puzzle pieces could be framed and turned into artwork for my son's room.
I just love the clean and vibrant detailing on many of these pieces from the 1972 board game. Let's take a closer look:
For a more uncluttered look, I could even pick some of the smaller square pieces and frame them in a grouping of four. Really, I'm not sure, but I'm just so in love with these adorable and modern-looking graphics. Feel free to offer up any ideas for ways to display these. The Australian mom who writes the blog, Thrifted Treasure, wrote a post a few weeks ago about some of her awesome game boards she found while thrifting. I'm on the lookout for a future post including photos of the room she puts them in.
In the same box of the numbers game was another color combination of aqua, red and black. Again, it's quite a simple look but these would lend an uncluttered look on the walls of a room that tends to get quite busy with toys, books and the occasional mound of clothes.
I should mention that these games are in excellent like-new condition. Well, before my kids got to them!
Here's another alphabet puzzle that would have been a good one to frame for my daughter's room because it was a present from the kids' great-grandmother, who used to work at a kids' nursery school years ago. Unfortunately, it is missing three letters so we just play with it.
I do have one Mary Poppins game board on the wall in my daughter's reading nook. It is colorful and contains many of the colors in my daughter's room, where our family congregates at night to read books. You can see the game board in the photograph below, to the left of my son.
Now, here's the dilemma. My kids and I actually play with these puzzles a fair amount, given our unofficial ban on TV. Just today, as I was photographing the games, my kids were happily playing with the puzzles and protested when I took them so I could arrange them for the photographs.
Should we continue playing with all of them and I start looking for artwork elsewhere, or should we choose a few nice-looking ones to frame? What would you do?
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2 comments:
I believe I posted my comment in the linked post, ups! anyway, your findings are very adorable and so perfect for two little ones hungry for knowledge.
Minnie as always I find you so inspiring as a Mother (and in many other aspects of life as well). Your children are so very lucky indeed to have parents who encourage and stimulate their little minds with something other than TV. These games are fantastic. Maybe if you have some games that have pieces missing (or find ones that aren't complete) you could frame those? Your children look like they enjoy those games too much to have them on the wall ;) Maybe you could rotate them on the wall, that way if the children want a particular game you can do a quick swap? Whatever you decide, this was a fantastic post! How gorgeous are your children :) PS - have you thought about teaching?? I am sure you would make a brilliant one! Have a lovely weekend - Tina xx
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